Unison ignition system lights off Atlas V engine

According to Unison Industries, its new dual direct spark ignition system (DDSI) successfully lit the Pratt & Whitney RL 10A-4-2 engine on the Lockheed Martin Atlas V Expendable Launch Vehicle’s Centaur upper stage. Launching from Cape Canaveral on August 21, the Centaur’s first RL 10A-4-2 main engine started after the separation of the first stage after just four-and-a-half minutes. Then, 24 min after liftoff, the DDSI re-ignited the engine for a four-min, 14-sec burn that propelled the Hot Bird 6 satellite to a supersynchronous orbit around the earth.